Plant · P-695

Job's Tears

Coix lacryma-jobi

Job's Tears is a robust wetland grass grown for a hard, glossy seed that comes in two forms - a hard-shelled wild type strung as beads for necklaces and rosaries, and a soft-shelled cultivated type that is the edible grain, cooked like rice, ground into flour, fried as a sweet, or brewed into tea and beer. The husked seed carries more protein and fat than rice and has a long history of medicinal use for digestive complaints and inflammation. It also works as fodder and silage for livestock, and its stems are woven into matting. It self-sows readily on consistently moist to wet ground, so a pond margin, swale bottom or ditch line suits it better than a cultivated bed.